This application is based on patent application No. 11-62278 filed in Japan, the contents of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a colored golf ball dyed in a pale color, and more specifically, to a colored golf ball having good discoloring resistance including yellowing discoloring.
2. Description of the Related Art
Majority of golf balls currently used are white, most of which having surface layer made of a composition that contains a white pigment such as titanium oxide and a fluorescent whitener thereby to increase the brightness.
Besides the white golf balls, colored golf balls are commercially available. Most of the colored balls are dyed in deep colors so as to be noticeable on lawn that becomes whitish in winter. Colored balls having deep colors as described above have such advantages as being easier to be recognized on a golf course when viewed from a distant position, easier to track the trajectory thereof after the shot, locate the landing point and distinguish from other players"" balls than white golf balls also in a season other than winter. In spite of such various superior advantages than those of the white ball, the colored balls are not used so widely.
The reason why the deep -colored balls are not popular is supposed to be the incongruous feeling for golfers who are accustomed to the white balls. A pale-colored golf ball having L value of 80 or higher, a value ranging from xe2x88x9230 to +30 and b value ranging from xe2x88x9230 to +30 has recently been suggested in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 10-155937, as a colored ball that would be acceptable to golfers, who prefer white balls, without incongruous feeling.
The publication quoted above does not mention a particular coloring agent used to obtain the pale-colored golf ball. Moreover, since no description on the type of the coloring agent is given at all, no information is available as to whether an organic pigment is used or not, an inorganic pigment is used or not, and whether a fluorescent pigment is used or not.
On the other hand, a conventional colored golf ball dyed in a deep color is less likely to experience a problem of discoloration than the white ball, and therefore has not been subject to improvements to make it resistant against discoloration due to ultraviolet rays and heat. In the case of the pale-colored golf ball, however, discoloration due to ultraviolet rays causes more trouble due to the color thereof that is nearer to white, than the deep-colored balls.
Brightness as that of a white ball cannot be achieved simply by mixing a coloring organic pigment and/or a coloring inorganic pigment used to give yellow, blue, pink, orange or other color with a white pigment used to make the color paler.
Also a pale color obtained by mixing a coloring organic pigment and/or a coloring inorganic pigment with a white pigment is difficult to distinguish from other color when viewed from a distance. Consequently, the pale-colored ball is difficult to distinguish in flight in such a weather as cloudy or rainy when the background is whitish, and is not able to demonstrate such an intrinsic advantage of the colored ball as the trajectory is easily recognized.
The invention has been accomplished under these circumstances, and, accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a golf ball having a pale color of bright color tone that ensures high visibility and does not give incongruous feeling on shot, with the color being resistant to discoloration due to ultraviolet rays or other causes.
The present invention is directed to a golf ball comprising a golf ball body and a colored layer formed on the ball body, the colored layer containing a white inorganic pigment and/or a white organic pigment, a coloring inorganic pigment and/or a coloring organic pigment, and a fluorescent pigment. When the color tone of the golf ball is represented by the Lab system, values of xe2x80x9cLxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9caxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cbxe2x80x9d satisfies the following relationships.
Lxe2x89xa782
10xe2x89xa6(a2+b2)xc2xdxe2x89xa645
The present invention provides, in another aspect, a golf ball comprising a core and a cover formed on the core. The cover is colored by containing a white inorganic pigment and/or a white organic pigment, a coloring inorganic pigment and/or a coloring organic pigment, and a fluorescent pigment. When the color tone of the golf ball is represented by the Lab system, values of xe2x80x9cLxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9caxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cbxe2x80x9d satisfies the following relationships.
Lxe2x89xa782
10xe2x89xa6(a2+b2)xc2xdxe2x89xa645
These and other objects, features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments/examples with the accompanying drawings.